Howdy, my fellow curious-minded subscribers,
Today, I’ve got a pretty neat book rec for ya.
Today, I introduce you to Travis McGee. A fictional character. But one who embodies everything you could ever aspire to be.
Who is this fella, Travis McGee, of whom I speak?
Well, you’d need to go back to the 60’s to have a shot at seeing one of the books laying around in which he is the main character.
The series is old. Super old. But, I am listening to one of them on audible right now (The Deep Blue Goodbye) and it is still sooooo good.
McGee is a private detective, with a boatload of charm and a quick wit, who cruises the Florida waters on a houseboat, The Busted Flush, which he won in a 30-hour game of poker.
Isn’t that a fantastic name for a boat?
Detective McGee isn’t in it for the money or the fame. In fact, he only works when he needs to. When he’s running low on money from the previous case that he solved, that’s when he starts to think about taking on another case.
His deals are simple. When somebody gets stolen from, Travis McGee attempts to get it back. If he does, he gets reimbursed for expenses incurred during the search and then they split what’s left 50/50.
If he’s unable to recover what was stolen, he loses out on all the expenses he incurred during his investigation. That’s his risk.
When he succeeds in an investigation, typically it’s a pretty decent pile of cash. So, he takes a while off and just cruises the Florida coast on The Busted Flush. Fixing it up. Tinkering around. And soul searching.
And that’s what really sets him apart… his soul-searching nature.
He’s not just solving crimes; he’s wrestling with the big questions of life, chewing on the meaty stuff…
Through his eyes, we get a glimpse of the human soul in all its weird glory.
He’s a thinking man, kinda like myself. He’s not just a crime solver. He wrestles with the “why” of it all… Why’d he put us here in the first place? Why does so much stuff go wrong? Why are little kids born into terrible life circumstances?
Ya know, big, unanswerable questions like that.
Anyways, besides being an absolute detective badass (which I am not), I find boat load of similarities between how he and I think about things. I think that’s why I enjoy these books so much.
Which is why I wrote this post today…
Because I think you might too. So, maybe you oughta pick up one of the books or download it on audible. And lemme know if you like them as much as I do.
That’s it for today
C-ya
Kurt
